


It was Always You

by luctoretemergo



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst and Porn, Choices, Established Relationship, Hidden Relationships, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Teasing, Time Travel, not just porn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-05
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-24 02:01:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20899811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luctoretemergo/pseuds/luctoretemergo
Summary: During a fight, Felix recklessly puts himself in harms way. When Byleth uses Divine Pulse to try and save his life it works - but a little too well. Felix finds himself more than five years in the past at Garreg Mach.  With no immediate prospects of returning to his own time, there's nothing to do but try and make the best of it.Aka: Felix is teleported to the past where he struggles with feelings, friendship and what he thinks he should tell everyone about the tragedies that they will suffer.





	It was Always You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Coshledak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coshledak/gifts).

> Thank you so much for reading ! This is a little project that happened due to beautiful art by @djuraah on twitter and a fun discord talk with @Cosheledak. In my mind it started out as just porn. But then I decided to throw some feelings and Blue Lion kid bonding into it too, just for fun.

One moment he’s facing down a mage, having put himself bodily between him and Annette. He can hear Byleth’s voice telling him to move, but he doesn’t. The Mage is aiming to kill, he can’t leave taking him down to change. He raises his sword and rushed forward -

Then there’s a flash of light. 

When it clears he’s standing in the middle of Garreg Mach. The monastery looks far less decrepit than the last time he’d been there. He doesn’t let his guard down, though. This can’t be right. They had been fighting in Faerghus only seconds ago. He didn’t know of any magic that could transport him this far, or why anyone would have wanted to. 

Then he hears voices.

Without thinking he ducks behind a pillar, pressing himself as close to it as possible. This could easily be a hallucination or illusion. But he didn’t want to take his chances if it wasn’t. He was alone here. Even with the advantage of knowing the layout of the grounds he was going to have a hard time remaining unseen.

When the voices get closer, and he can see who they are coming from, he nearly stumbles from his hiding spot. His gloved fingers dig into the stone to the point they ache as he tries to will away this hallucinations.

Mercedes, Annette, Ingrid, Sylvain, Ashe, Dimitri Dedue - all of them. But not them. Younger and brighter. Without the weight of a five year war on their shoulders.

He doesn’t know what to do after seeing them. His legs lock up, refusing to let him run. Nor can he look away. Luckily he’s far enough away that none of them notice him, down at one end of the courtyard, away from where they were walking. Judging by the time of day, he assumes they are going to the mess hall. 

It hits him, that he doesn’t see himself. Whoever made this illusion knew what they were doing. It was tailored very specifically to him. All of his class mates are there beside himself. He wonders if the other students of the academy are there. 

A quick glance around shows him that they are. Many familiar faces, some whose names he knows in passing and some who he doesn’t. The latter is what throws him off. How would the illusionist know which people to pull from his mind to populate Garreg Mach if he didn’t even know their names himself? A nagging sensation lingers on the back of his mind. 

He catches sight of Dorothea and Petra as well. Having Black Eagles students puts him more on his guard. They had sided with Edelgard after all. 

He is so distracted by his observations that Felix doesn’t notice when silent footsteps and a silent presence come up behind him.

“Felix?”

The sound of his name makes him jump and turn at the same time. His sword held out defensively. Only to turn to look at the frowning face of Byleth. His hair is still dark and his eyes still violet. Which gives him a pretty good idea of what month it is. His dark green eyebrows furrow deeper in confusion the longer he looks at him.

“You look different.”

He says it so plainly and with the exact cadence of voice he usually has, that for a moment Felix wonders if he didn’t just get knocked unconscious with whatever attack that mage threw at him. No illusion could be this real, could it? He was proficient in magic but he had never heard of such a thing. 

“I am different,” Felix replies, the words pressed out from between his teeth. 

Byleth frowns deeper, his head tilting to the side. “I see,” he starts, putting his hand to his chin in contemplation. “You seem….older?” He says it as though he isn’t entirely sure of what he is saying. 

At the correct guess, he isn’t sure if he wants to laugh or cry. What he does is drop his sword, his shoulders drooping at the same time as the tension drains out of him. It is just Byleth. Even if this is an illusion he doesn’t think the even keeled professor was going to try and murder him. Maybe he’d wake up if he did. 

He isn’t sure what to tell him. Lying would make more sense. There’s no guarantee that Byleth will accept that he’s from over five years in the future, sent back in time somehow. Yet his instincts are screaming at him to tell the truth. If there were some way to fix all of this, he would need everyone he could working towards it.

Looking back up at Byleth, he sees the obvious concern in his eyes. If there was anyone who would take him seriously, it was the people here. 

“I am older,” he starts, watching carefully for Byleth’s reaction. He’s more reserved than the Byleth he knows now, but the subtle raise of his eyebrows gives him away. “About six years older than the me you know, if I had to guess.” He might be wrong by a few months, but it has been at least five years since these peaceful days. 

Byleth’s lips press together in a thin line, and he narrows his eyes. “How?” 

He shakes his head in an immediate answer. “I don’t know,” he admits, voice defeated. “One minute we’re in a fight, there was a flash of light and I heard you yell at me and then...I blinked and was here.” 

For a few moments Byleth is quiet, his expression closed off and distant in a way that Felix remembers from their early days at the academy. It looks as though he is lost in his own thoughts. Felix wonders if he’s trying to figure out how to tell Felix he’s clearly lost his mind, or trying to decide if he should kill this man who is clearly trying to impersonate one of his students. The chance of Byleth actually believing him seems so incredibly slim. 

“Okay, that makes sense,” Byleth says finally. 

Felix stares at him for a moment, wondering if maybe they’ve both lost their minds. 

“It does?” He questions. Byleth nods in response. “You believe me?” 

“I do, I’ve heard of things like this before though not to this….extent,” Byleth explains, his lips curling down into a frown. “Usually the displacement isn’t this large.” 

Felix continues to stare at him as though he’s grown a second head. “So you’ve heard of people going back in time before?” He demands, not sure why that makes his chest tight and his breathing becomes short. “Will I be able to go back?” The five years after Byleth disappeared had been torture. In the end, they were worth it. But he isn’t sure if he wants to experience them all over again.

“I don’t know, but I’m sure they are working extremely hard to get you back so you should believe in them,” Byleth says gently, reaching out and squeezing Felix’s shoulder comfortingly. “For now, we can work on it from our end as well.” He gives a second squeeze to Felix’s shoulder before letting his hand fall away. 

Byleth’s words are comforting and terrifying at the same time. He has to believe in everyone working to bring him back. He’s certain that they are. The idea of being stuck in the past is enough to make his breath catch in his throat. 

“We should go tell everyone else, they’re going to notice the difference,” Byleth suggests. 

Felix looks down at himself and nods. He’s wearing clothing completely different from his days at the academy, and while he’s let his hair grow out since it’s war-time length it isn’t the same style as before. His classmates would be the first to notice all of these differences. Ingrid, Dimitri and Sylvain especially. 

He sighs, shoulders tense with the onslaught of questions he knows is coming. “Let’s get this over with, I’ll wait in the classroom.” 

The Blue Lion classroom is far from what he last remembers, yet extremely familiar at the same time. He can pick out exactly where everyone sits. He walks over to his seat, next to Sylvain’s which is just as disorganized as he remembers. The corners of his mouth quirk up briefly at the nostalgia. He remembers long hours spent next to each other at these spots. 

There are a number of voices outside of the door a few moments later, and he stands up straighter even though his back is still to the door.

“Something has happened to Felix he’s -” Byleth starts to explain, his voice calm.

“What do you mean something’s happened professor? Is he okay?” Sylvain’s voice is the first and loudest, with Ingrid and Annette echoing similar questions just a half-second later. 

“He’s fine,” Byleth says firmly. “But there’s something we have to explain to you, so if you could all just go into the classroom  
.” There’s a bit of grumbling from everyone quieting down, and its clear that Byleth is waiting for something before opening the doors. Once it goes mostly quiet, the large doors to the classroom open up. 

There’s a shuffling of footsteps, one set in particular moving faster than the rest.

“Felix!” Sylvain exclaims, a broad hand landing on Felix’s shoulder and turning him around. “Are you okay? What is the professor….”

At the tug, Felix turns around to face everyone. Not that he can see anyone else with Sylvain crowding into his space. He looks up at him with a raised eyebrow, the silence surprising him. The staring, surprises him less. He looks different and he knows that Sylvain is taking it all in. He can feel the way his eyes roam over his face and body as if picking out every minute difference. 

Anyone who thinks Sylvain is stupid, has never been analyzed by him. 

“Cat got your tongue?” Felix questions lowly, looking pointedly at Sylvain for a moment before leaning to the side so the rest of his friends could see him. Most are looking at him in various stages of shock and confusion. 

Then, all at once, the silence breaks. 

“Felix, why do you look so different?” 

“You cut your hair! You have bangs now!” 

“Why are your clothes bloodied?”  
“Are you  
?” 

The barrage of questions continues on for a few seconds, Felix keeps his lips pressed together as he allows them to get it out of their system. He doesn’t feel like explaining himself over and over again through the din of their questions. His eyes briefly cut to Sylvain, who is still staring down at him with a wide eyed and dazed expression. 

Byleth starts to shush everyone gently, lifting both of his hands in the air. But it is Dimitri, who notices their professors actions, that takes action.

“Everyone, quiet, please. Felix and the Professor aren’t going to leave us in the dark,” he explains, his voice commanding but kind. Dimitri smiles softly at Byleth, and for a moment Felix wants to laugh at how obvious he was about his crush on him. Instead he swallows down his smile. 

“Thank you Dimitri,” Byleth says gently. “He’s right, we are going to explain, so please listen.” 

Byleth does most of the explaining. About how Felix was from the future and had been transported back due to a magical incident. None of it was wrong. Felix has the distinct feeling that he’s leaving out certain parts of the story. Through all of their battles he has always put his faith in Byleth, though, and he decides to continue to do that now. He’s never led him or the rest of them astray. He doesn’t expect him to start now. 

“If you’re from the future, does that mean you can tell us what’s going to happen?” Annette questions cheerfully, her eyes wide and shining. “Ooh like, who we marry and what we do after leaving the Academy?” She continues on, cupping her own face with her hands and swaying on the spot. 

Felix can’t stop the faint twitch of a smile at her reaction. She was always good at lightening his moods. “No,” he responds bluntly, only feeling a little bad at the way she deflates. “I don’t know how that would change things and it isn’t worth the risk.” His tone, at least, is almost apologetic. 

He and Byleth hadn’t discussed this. But as he cuts his gaze to look at him, he’s nodding softly in agreement. 

“Well that’s fine, the future would be boring if we knew exactly what would happen,” Ingrid says, smiling at Annette in a reassuring manner. Felix can see the worry in her eyes, though. He knows that she wants to know about her future. Around this time her father is still trying to marry her off, if he recalls correctly. He sympathises. But he won’t go back on what he said. 

There are a few more inane questions, most of them more hypothetical than directed at Felix. That gives him time to observe everyone. He didn’t realize he had any sort of sentimentality for his days at the Academy until he’s thrust back there. He hadn’t known then that those would be his last peaceful days for years to come. 

Someone, Ashe he thinks, mentions that he wants to go back to the dining hall. “I didn’t get to finish my lunch and we have to tend to the horses this week,” he says, rubbing his stomach almost pitifully. But the wink he gives Felix, makes him think that Ashe knows exactly what he’s doing.

“Oh yes, they have my favorite dessert today, Annie we should really get back,” Mercedes chimes in, clasping her hands in front of her chest and smiling happily. 

With that, everyone turns away and starts chatting among themselves as they exit the classroom and head back to the dining hall. Except two. Byleth is slower, rounding out most of the group and looking back over his shoulder at Felix, to make sure he’s okay. 

Felix nods at him silently. 

The other one still in the room is Sylvain, who all this time has barely taken his eyes off him. The door the class room falls shut, and Felix finally turns to look at him once more. “Are you just going to stand there and stare the entire time I’m here?” He demands, his words sharp though without any actual malice. 

Sylvain seems to snap out of his thoughts, and much to Felix’s surprise and delight his face goes a little red. “Right, sorry, I didn’t mean to stare,” Sylvain admits, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck. “You just look different and it is so weird to think that this is you and not you at the same time,” he explains, his hand falling away from his neck and his head hanging forward. “That doesn’t make sense at all, does it?”

He has to resist smiling, Sylvain flustered is surprisingly endearing. He’s seen it so little in all of the years they’ve known each other. It makes a flash of desire to fluster Sylvain more spark in the back of his mind. When will he ever have the chance to do that again?

“Not really,” Felix answers bluntly, watching the way Sylvain’s shoulder’s flinch at the answer. “But someone has to be the idiot that is weirded out by this and apparently that’s you.” He can’t keep the amusement out of his voice now. It is difficult not to be amused by how on edge Sylvain is about this. 

“Hey, don’t be mean,” Sylvain complains, pouting. “This is really weird! I don’t know how everyone isn’t weirded out by this!” 

Felix shakes his head, crossing his arms over his chest and smiling faintly up at Sylvain. He hopes that he gets back to his proper time, so he can tell Sylvain all about the fact that his younger self was flustered just by the sight of him. “Others are bound to be surprised by this, which is why I don’t want the entire school to know,” he agrees, reaching up to finger his bangs. There was nothing he could do about those. But his clothing was another story. “Go to my room and get me one of my uniforms, I can’t walk around wearing this.” 

There’s a moment where Sylvain doesn’t go anywhere, but instead just looks at him. The moment stretches on for a long time. If Felix didn’t know better, he would say Sylvain was checking him out. 

“I don’t know, these clothes are a really good look on you Felix,” Sylvain argues, his expression completely serious for a moment. 

He can’t help the way his eyebrows raise at the compliment. “Whether they look good or not is irrelevant, just go get me a uniform - now,” he urges, reaching out and gently shoving Sylvain so that he stops staring and gets moving.

“Hey! There’s no need for violence,” Sylvain complains, pouting once more but reluctantly turning to leave. “I was just trying to give you a compliment.” He seems to be grumbling mostly to himself as he turns to leave. 

Felix shakes his head, perching back on his desk once Sylvain is out of the room. He rests his chin on his hand and thinks about the fact that Sylvain was so wrapped up in how he looks now. It was amusing. He likes the attention, he’s always liked the attention from Sylvain. Though during these years he was sure all of it was just the automatic flirting he did with everyone. Right now, he is less certain. 

He wonders if he can fluster Sylvain any more than he already has. The embarrassed red of his cheeks had made him feel rather triumphant. 

Sylvain knocks on the door to the classroom before walking in, clothes hanging over his arm. “I brought you a pair of boots too, which looking at you now was clearly the right choice,” he explains, eyes lingering on Felix’s upper thighs were his boots end as he walks over to put the clothes on the table next to him. He takes a few steps back, but doesn’t leave. 

Standing up, Felix reaches out and sorts through the clothes. It looks like everything he’ll need. He’s fairly certain it will all fit. 

As he goes through his clothes, he can feel Sylvain looking at him. Slowly, he turns to look at him. “Are you going to watch me change?” He asks directly, watching with concealed delight as Sylvain goes red again.

“N-no, of course not, I just figured you might send me out to get you something else to wear!” He argues, turning around and lacing his fingers behind his head. The tips of his ears were red and just barely visible through his hair. 

Smirking to himself, he decides that one way to pass his time here would be to see how much he can fluster Sylvain. It’ll be nice to not be the one getting flustered for once, even if it's just for however long he’s stuck in the past. Maybe it will help distract him from just how shitty he feels not warning anyone of everything they are going to go through in a few short months too.


End file.
